Non-Contact Monitoring of Operating Conditions for Solar Cells in a Photovoltaic Module Using a Surface Potential Meter for Detecting the Risk of Fire
Abstract
:Featured Application
Abstract
1. Introduction
- Inexhaustible energy source
- 2.
- Maintenance, automation, and uncrewed operations are easy.
- 3.
- Installation locations are not limited.
- 4.
- Because of its modular structure, it is suitable for mass production and has a considerable scale advantage.
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Photovoltaic Modules, in General
2.2. Photovoltaic Module Used in This Work
2.3. Testbed
2.4. Surface Potential Meter
2.5. Pyranometer
2.6. Datalogger
2.7. Calculation Method of Potential Difference by Surface Potential Meter
2.8. Experimental Method—General Procedure
2.9. Experimental Method—Open Circuit Condition
2.10. Experimental Method—Short Circuit Condition
2.11. Procedure for the Risk Assessment of Fire Hazards
3. Results
3.1. Photovoltaic Module in the Open-Circuit Condition
3.2. Photovoltaic Module in the Short-Circuited Condition
4. Discussion
4.1. Reverse-Bias Voltage Measurement
4.2. Accuracy and Reproducibility of Reverse-Bias Voltage
4.3. Calculation on Temperature Rise to Assess Fire Risk
4.4. Variation by the Type of Solar Cells and Module Configuration
5. Conclusions
- ♦
- We developed a non-contact measurement method by detecting the carrier movement by the electrical field generated by the surface potential of the solar cell inside the module (in between the cover glass and the back sheet). The heat dissipation of the solar cell leading to a fire hazard is quantitatively calculated by the product of the circuit current and the detected reverse-bias voltage.
- ♦
- The above method was validated by measuring each cell’s reverse-bias voltage without cutting the circuit in the module. The error range was sufficiently small for the fire risk assessment.
- ♦
- Demonstration of the fire-risk assessment by the non-contact measurement by the following steps:
- Non-contact measurement of the reverse-bias voltage under the controlled operating condition.
- Calculate each solar cell’s heat dissipation per area (W/cm2) by multiplying the reverse-bias voltage and output current by the load resistance.
- Estimation of the maximum temperature of each cell under a given condition. The worst-case solar irradiance may be 1400 W/m2, and the maximum temperature is proportional to the solar irradiance level. The typical calculation of the worst-case temperature with typical values follows:(261 °C: Worst-case temperature)= (13 V: Reverse-bias voltage tested at 1000 W/m2)× (38 mA/cm2: Short-circuit current density of the cells per area, under standard testing condition, 1000 W/m2)× (280 Kcm2/W: Temperature rise per unit heat dissipation)× (1.38: Current correction on solar irradiance correction for the worst-case)+ (70 °C: Operating temperature of the solar cell under worst-case solar irradiance)> (250 °C: Firing point of woods)
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Item | IR Camera | This Method |
---|---|---|
Visual presentation | Yes | No |
Indicator | Temperature | Heat |
Sensing | IR radiation | Electric field |
Scaling to the worst-case | Not applicable | Applicable |
Measurement error | 1 °C | 1% of the fire risk threshold |
Item | Output Value | Performance |
---|---|---|
Nominal maximum power (Pm) | 90 (W) | >90% |
Nominal maximum output operating current (Ipm) | 5.06 (A) | |
Nominal maximum output operating voltage (Vpm) | 17.8 (V) | |
Nominal short-circuit current (Isc) | 5.4 (A) | >90% |
Nominal open-circuit voltage (Voc) | 22.4 (V) | ±10% |
Condition | Irradiance (W/m2) |
---|---|
No processing | 152.4 |
Cover cut | 185.7 |
+Aluminum tape attached | 218.5 |
Condition | Irradiance (W/m2) |
---|---|
Response time | about 17 s |
Viewing angle | 2π (sr) |
Operating temperature range | 10 to +50 °C (accuracy guaranteed range) −40 to +80 °C (operating temperature range) |
Temperature characteristics | ±2% or less (rate of response change when ambient temperature changes by 50 °C) |
Condition | Values |
---|---|
Voltage measurement range | ±1 mV to ±100 V 1–5 V |
Resolution | 500 nV |
Recording interval | 10 ms to 50 ms, 100 ms to 1 h |
Dimensions | 272 W × 182.4 H × 66.5 D mm |
Functions | Real-time saving to USB memory, Numerical value/waveform calculation, etc. |
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Shimizu, R.; Ota, Y.; Nagaoka, A.; Araki, K.; Nishioka, K. Non-Contact Monitoring of Operating Conditions for Solar Cells in a Photovoltaic Module Using a Surface Potential Meter for Detecting the Risk of Fire. Appl. Sci. 2023, 13, 10391. https://doi.org/10.3390/app131810391
Shimizu R, Ota Y, Nagaoka A, Araki K, Nishioka K. Non-Contact Monitoring of Operating Conditions for Solar Cells in a Photovoltaic Module Using a Surface Potential Meter for Detecting the Risk of Fire. Applied Sciences. 2023; 13(18):10391. https://doi.org/10.3390/app131810391
Chicago/Turabian StyleShimizu, Ryo, Yasuyuki Ota, Akira Nagaoka, Kenji Araki, and Kensuke Nishioka. 2023. "Non-Contact Monitoring of Operating Conditions for Solar Cells in a Photovoltaic Module Using a Surface Potential Meter for Detecting the Risk of Fire" Applied Sciences 13, no. 18: 10391. https://doi.org/10.3390/app131810391